


Chara and Frisk Week

by lesbianpapyrus



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, chara and frisk week
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-20
Updated: 2018-12-15
Packaged: 2019-07-14 20:17:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 2,633
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16047797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lesbianpapyrus/pseuds/lesbianpapyrus
Summary: A small collection of stories for Chara and Frisk Week on Tumblr.





	1. Beginning

The beginning was hard.

When they awoke, just feeling the ground underneath their body was too much. They hadn’t _felt_ anything for a hundred years. Dead people didn’t feel things.

But they were dead no more.

Lifting their face, they saw in front of them a golden flower with a face, his lips parted in awe, and a brown-skinned child with curly hair, their eyes kind and concerned.

“Chara?” the flower whispered. “Chara, it’s me—”

Asriel. Now called Flowey. Chara already knew.

And the other child…

The other child held out a hand to Chara, and slowly they took it, allowing them to help them up.

The child began to sign. _Hello, Chara. My name is—_

 _Frisk._ Chara signed back smoothly. _I know. I know everything._

The way they said it made shivers run down Flowey’s stem.

Frisk was silent. They had suspected that Chara’s spirit had been awakened in the Underground… Chara may have known everything, but how they _felt_ about everything was a mystery to Frisk.

Frisk signed again. _We should talk. Alone._ They gave a look to two monsters behind Chara, Sans and Alphys, who nodded after glancing at each other.

Chara breathed deeply— _breathing. Wow. That’s familiar… and yet so strange._

They didn’t know how they felt about being alive again—being alive in the past had been nothing but pain.

But the way they felt about Frisk, and Asriel, and Toriel and Asgore and Papyrus and Undyne and all the others—it made them recognize that this time, life could be different.

They’d been silent too long. Frisk signed again quizzically. _You good?_

Chara took another deep breath and nodded.

Frisk picked up Flowey’s pot with one hand and held the other out to Chara, who took it once again.

And together, the three of them left the laboratory, Frisk determined to welcome Chara into a new world of sunlight, peace, and love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm doing Chara and Frisk Week on Tumblr! You can check out the schedule and rules here: http://chara-and-friskweek.tumblr.com/post/177945028036/announcing-charafriskweek-2-electric-boogaloo
> 
> I'm planning on doing all seven and connecting them to make a little story.
> 
> enjoy!


	2. Food

Chara sat outside on the porch, breathing in the fresh air. It was the first time they had been alone since coming back.

They had already talked to their brother. Flowey had been… afraid of them, especially after hearing how much they knew. Their talk had ended alright, but Flowey had still noticeably stuck to Frisk after.

That had hurt. Chara knew they’d done wrong, that Frisk had done better—and they resented Frisk for it.

They heard the front door of Toriel’s house open, and sighed. “Hi, Frisk.”

Frisk sat beside them with a bag of cheese-covered chips. _Haven’t eaten since coming back._

“I’m not hungry.”

Frisk held out the bag. _They’re good. My favorite._

“Good for you. Not hungry.”

The bag shook insistently. In a burst of irritation, Chara smacked it, sending most of the chips flying out into the grass.

Frisk stood up and left without signing another word.

Now Chara felt more horrible before. Frisk was just trying to help… as usual.

Why did Frisk always have to help? People like that always got hurt… Chara had learned that a long time ago.

The door opened again, and a single red apple was placed on the porch beside Chara.

Chara grabbed Frisk’s arm before they left again, and Frisk sat next to them silently, the apple between them.

“Sorry,” Chara said eventually.

_It’s fine._

“No. Really. I’m sorry.” Chara thought a minute before continuing. “I just don’t understand.”

_What?_

“Why did you bring me back? Why are you trying to help me?”

Frisk was quiet for a while. Finally they began to sign. _Your guidance helped me through Underground. I know you were there, somehow._ They paused… _It wasn’t fair._

“What wasn’t fair?”

_That Flowey got to live again, and you didn’t._

Chara picked up the apple and rubbed its smooth surface uncomfortably. “I was okay the way I was… he’s right, you know. I’m not the greatest person… I don’t deserve another chance at this.”

_You had problems. We can help fix them._ Frisk smiled. _You’re just a kid, you know._

“I’m older than you.”

_By three years. I’m only eight._

Chara looked up into the sky, then back at their apple. “What am I supposed to do now?”

Frisk shrugged. _Be part of a family again._

Chara could hear people chattering away inside. Toriel— _Mom—_ excitedly asking Sans and Alphys how they did it, Papyrus and many of the others wondering who the heck Chara was as Asgore explained… Mettaton preening himself vocally.

It was hardly the family Chara had known before, but it sounded just as good, and even more interesting.

Chara smiled. “Okay. I’ll try to do better this time.”

Frisk patted their shoulder.

Chara looked at the apple again, then bit into it, savoring their first taste of food after coming back.

Then they signed, _Thanks, Frisk._

_No problem, sib._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I nearly forgot to post this today lol. anyway here's the Day 2 prompt for Chara and Frisk Week!
> 
> for the record, I headcanon Chara as autistic and selectively mute like Frisk, but, unlike Frisk, they will speak to certain people (Frisk, Flowey, Toriel, or Asgore) as long as they are alone together.


	3. Holiday

_Did you like everything, Chara?_

It was late at night on Christmas, and the festivities were long over. Now Chara and Frisk were sitting in their bedroom, comparing the gifts they had gotten and recovering from a huge holiday meal.

Chara smiled a little at Frisk. “Yeah. It was pretty great. I thought I was gonna miss it back when I was a spirit, or whatever… but I’m glad I didn’t.” They stretched. “What about you? You like everything?”

Frisk nodded. _Best Christmas I’ve ever had!_

“Really?” Chara raised an eyebrow. “All we did was eat and open some presents. Which is great and all, but… you’ve really never had a better Christmas than that?”

Frisk was very quiet for a minute, then they began to sign slowly. _Nope… not that I can remember._

“…Why not?” asked Chara tentatively, not wanting to pry, but very curious.

Frisk shrugged sadly. _After I told my parents I wasn’t a boy… they punished me by taking presents away, or replacing them with stuff they said was for boys. I hated holidays after that._ Then they brightened. _But Mom and the others have made them a lot better._

It was this simple story that made Chara realize just how little they knew about Frisk and their past. They knew about Frisk’s personality, their journey through the Underground, everything they had done since coming to live with Toriel—but their old life, their old parents, everything they had done before awakening Chara—it was all a mystery.

Chara wondered how similar Frisk’s story was to their own.

“Well… I’m sorry your parents weren’t accepting… mine weren’t either,” they admitted. “But you’re right. Mom and Dad and the others have made it _tons_ better.”

Frisk nodded and picked up one of their new gifts—a new kickball. _Catch,_ they signed before throwing it at Chara.

Chara caught it, getting the feeling that Frisk didn’t want to talk about old lives right now. They could understand that—it was probably painful to think about.

But as they tossed the ball around, and eventually went to sleep for the night, they still couldn’t help but wonder how much they had in common, and how willing either of them were to find out.


	4. Music

Being alive again had its ups and downs. The upsides mostly involved Chara being part of a family again. The downsides were mostly being able to remember everything that had happened in their old life, up to and including their own death.

Sometimes they were able to ignore the memories. Other times, often in the dead of night, they would wake up from dreams gasping for breath, as though they were dying again. The pain of reliving was unimaginable.

Fortunately, Frisk had introduced them to a coping mechanism they had never considered before: music.

Chara’s parents had been very strict about music, so they had never listened to much before living with the Dreemurr family. Toriel was far more lenient with her children and let them listen to anything as long as it didn’t have explicit lyrics.

Frisk sometimes had nightmares of their own, and if they woke up in the middle of the night, they would pull out their little music player and blast a song as long as they could, chasing away the memories and bad feelings until they could settle back to sleep.

Now, they shared the player with Chara.

One night, both of them woke up at the same time.

Frisk turned on their bedside lamp so Chara could see them sign. _You okay?_

Since it was late, Chara signed back instead of speaking. _Stupid bad dream._

Frisk nodded. _Me too._ They pulled the music player from a drawer in their bedside table. _Wanna share?_

Chara nodded, and Frisk left their bed to join them.

_You can pick the song,_ Chara said, not really caring what they listened to as long as it was something.

They each put in one earbud, and Frisk started a Disney song.

“A dream is a wish your heart makes…”

Chara snorted. _This song is dumb._

But Frisk was humming along contentedly.

“In dreams you will lose your heartaches; whatever you wish for, you keep.”

Chara sighed. Even though they thought the song was childish, there was something comforting about the simple tune and the kind voice singing it.

“No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep on believing, the dream that you wish will come true…”

Somehow, these words rang true to Chara. For the longest time, they’d wished and wished for a loving family, and though they had lost hope over the years, a small part of them had never stopped believing it could happen.

And now look what they had.

The song started over; Frisk had put the song on repeat. And Chara found that they didn’t mind.

Frisk’s head drooped onto Chara’s shoulder, and soon they were asleep.

Chara was quick to follow, their dreams filled with better things thanks to the music.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this was yesterday's prompt, I got to it late.
> 
> song lyrics are from "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes" from Disney's 1950 Cinderella.


	5. Family

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> warning for very brief discussion of transphobia.

After weeks and weeks of curiosity, Chara finally asked the question.

“Frisk, what was your old family like?”

Chara and Frisk were sitting on the back porch swing alone. Frisk, who had been pushing the swing using their feet on the floor, froze, letting the swing settle to a stop.

“Never mind,” Chara said quickly. “Dumb question.”

But Frisk was already signing.

_I don’t know how to feel about them… they gave me everything I wanted… but they didn’t accept me._

Chara listened intently as Frisk went on. In their young years, their parents had been very loving—buying them only the best toys, getting them the best education, and teaching them about their Māori heritage. It was only after Frisk had started spouting their “deviant views of gender” at about age seven that their parents, their mother in particular, had begun punishing them harshly any time they asked to be called by another name or different pronouns.

They more they talked, the more Frisk’s story sounded familiar to Chara. _Very_ familiar.

“My parents were almost exactly the same,” they said when Frisk was finished. “Except they were…” They swallowed. Chara’s parents had been bad from the beginning, and had only gotten worse after Chara’s reveal of their own gender. They couldn’t seem to find the words to talk about it.

Frisk patted their shoulder. _It’s okay._

“Frisk? Chara? Sweethearts, dinner’s almost ready.” Toriel poked her head out the door. “If you eat well, I’ve baked a pie for dessert!”

Chara and Frisk smiled after she left. There was no reason to dwell on the past, they knew, because they had a bright future here.

Their old parents were no family to them, not anymore. They had a loving mother in Toriel, a wise father in Asgore, and a number of kind and exciting friends.

And they had each other.

And as long as they had all that, they knew they didn’t have to worry.


	6. Culture

Chara and Frisk had shared a bedroom for months now, but it wasn’t until recently that Chara really noticed the interesting weavings and carved statues on Frisk’s side of the room.

The weavings were like large mats with intricate geometric patterns hanging on the wall, while the statues sat on Frisk’s dresser and writing desk, a collection of various faces, some scarily lifelike with the details, others seeming almost like caricatures.

Chara was staring at these decorations one day when Frisk walked in and saw them, following their gaze and raising their own eyebrow inquisitively.

“What’s with all this stuff? I mean, I know you’re Māori, but where’d you get it?” Chara asked, sitting up.

Frisk thought for a minute before smiling and walking up to their dresser, picking up a carving and looking it over before setting it back. _My human dad gave them to me. He was Māori too. Wanted to make sure I was connected to my culture._

“Don’t they give you bad memories, then? I mean… since your dad didn’t accept you and all.”

Frisk shrugged. _Sometimes. But I think he was right. Culture is important. It’s who I am._

Chara was quiet, thinking about how Frisk, as young as they were, really did seem to care about where they came from. Playing traditional games at their birthday parties, signing the language, asking Toriel to take them down to the cultural center every month…

Part of Chara still didn’t understand. After the terrible treatment they had suffered under their human parents, they had never wanted anything to do with their home culture, even if that had had nothing to do with what happened. Frisk had suffered similarly, and yet hung on to their heritage with eager hands.

But another part was a little jealous. In their culture, Frisk found identity and kinship with the people like them. Even if Chara wasn’t overly fond of people, they still felt a longing for acceptance among their own people.

And there was always the question of what they were missing out on.

After Frisk left, Chara was still thinking, occasionally glancing at the works of art on Frisk’s side of the room. What wonders did their home culture hold, they pondered?

Soon enough, they had made a decision, and they went downstairs to ask Toriel if she happened to have a book about the culture of Vietnam. Toriel seemed surprised at first, but told them that though she did not have a book about Vietnam, the library surely would, and if Chara wanted, she could take them there.

Within an hour, Chara had their book and was looking through it, beginning their journey to learn about their home, and about themself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> finally got around to picking this back up. the last prompt/chapter will be up Saturday.


	7. Ending

The beginning was hard. But the ending was worth it.

One year after coming back to life, Chara finally felt like they belonged.

It hit them one night as they were eating dinner with the whole family. Asgore, Toriel, Frisk, Flowey, Sans, Papyrus, Undyne, Alphys, Mettaton, Napstablook… all talking and laughing and smiling. And Chara was smiling with them.

They didn’t realize they were smiling until they saw Frisk grinning right next to them. Immediately, Chara fixed their face into its usual neutral, unamused position, but they couldn’t keep it that way for long.

Before they knew it, Toriel was asking them what was wrong, and they could feel tears on their face. They quickly wiped them away, only for more to come. Finally, Chara spoke.

“Nothing’s wrong, Mom. Absolutely nothing.” They were smiling again.

Toriel looked at them for a minute with concern before smiling back and running a paw through their hair.

Frisk took Chara’s hand under the table and tilted their head curiously.

_Just really happy you brought me back,_ Chara signed with one hand.

Frisk nodded, continuing to hold their hand as they ate.

_Thanks for everything, sib,_ Chara thought.

Yes, the beginning had been hard.

But Chara had found the new world to be full of sunlight, peace, and love. And it was more than they had ever dared to hope for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and here's the last prompt for Chara and Frisk Week from back in September.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this little story!


End file.
